HANOVER , Germany -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Archaeologists have found more than 600 relics from a huge battle between a Roman army and Barbarians in the third century , long after historians believed Rome had given up control of northern Germany .

Some of the artifacts are so well preserved that the scientists can already retrace some of the battle lines .

`` We have to write our history books new , because what we thought was that the activities of the Romans ended at nine or 10 -LRB- years -RRB- after Christ , '' said Lutz Stratmann , science minister for the German state of Lower Saxony . `` Now we know that it must be 200 or 250 after that . ''

For weeks , archeologist Petra Loenne and her team have been searching this area with metal detectors , pulling hundreds of ancient Roman weapons out of the ground . They paint a picture of a highly organized , technologically superior Roman army beset by Germanic tribes in a forest about 80 km -LRB- 50 miles -RRB- south of the modern city of Hanover .

The hillside battlefield was discovered by relic-hunters illegally searching for souvenirs of more recent wars near the town of Kalefeld-Oldenrode . One of them brought some of the items he found to Loenne , who works for the local government .

The artifacts are so well preserved that the scientists can already retrace some of the battle lines . Watch how the battlefield discovery could re-write history ''

`` We believe the Germans ambushed the Romans here , but the legions quickly fired back with catapults and archers -- and then it came to a massive man-on-man onslaught , '' Loenne said .

The items unearthed so far include an axe , still sharp after nearly 1,800 years ; horseshoes ; shovels ; spearheads ; and dozens of arrowheads for a Scorpio , a cross between a catapult and a crossbow -- the ancient equivalent of artillery .

`` With a very high speed , on a very long distance -- about 300 meters -- you can hit targets precisely , '' said Henning Hassman , of Hanover 's archeological institute .

Researchers say the evidence suggests the tribesmen lured the Romans into the forest to keep them from making full use of those long-range weapons and draw them into hand-to-hand combat , outside of the formations the imperial troops had mastered . However , they believe the Romans ultimately prevailed .

Other relics include coins depicting the late second-century Roman emperor Commodus , depicted in the Oscar-winning Hollywood epic `` Gladiator '' -- a film that opens with a scene of battle against a barbarian horde that scientists say appears to be largely accurate . And Loenne said her team may have only begun to scratch the surface of the forest .

`` We hope we might find fortifications and if we are lucky , maybe even battlefield graveyards , '' she said .

@highlight

Relics found from battle between Romans , Barbarians in third century

@highlight

Historians had thought Rome had given up control of northern Germany by then

@highlight

Battlefield found by relic-hunters illegally searching for souvenirs of recent wars